Don Meehan, the agent for former Avs goalie Jose Theodore and current left winger Ryan Smyth, is one of the good guys in the business. At least he is to us newspaper guys. He calls you back, which is more than about 80 percent of NHL agents do. The surprising thing about that is, he’s probably one of the 10 most powerful people in all of hockey. His client list is staggering.

He’s been negotiating contracts for 30 years now, and has seen it all. (By the way, a few people have asked me over the years what an agent’s usual commission is on a new contract. And the answer is: usually 1 percent. Some guys might get 2 or maybe a little more, depending on that they do in a particular deal, but 1 percent is the standard. So, for every $1 million in a contract, the agent gets 10 grand. A $22 million deal (see below), and you’ve got 220K. Not bad work if you can get it).

Today, I spoke with him on the phone about the situation that went down with Theodore and the Avs. Tomorrow, I’ll have a column in the print paper talking about this more and what happened with NHL free agency in general. Read more…

Ever date someone who wasn’t all that much before you met them. In fact, they were kind of a mess? Then, a year or two later – whether from being in your aura, or going on a great workout plan or hot new diet or some great new job – they become more “marketable”, and then they dump your sorry butt? And, worse, they never gave you any credit for the part you played in their asendancy?

Yup, been there. After thinking it over a bit today, and after reading a lot of your reaction to today’s news, first reported right here on this blog, that Jose Theodore will test the free-agent market, I’m thinking that situation applies a little here. Read more…

Terry Frei graduated from Wheat Ridge High School in the Denver area and has degrees in history and journalism from the University of Colorado-Boulder. He worked for the Rocky Mountain News while attending CU and joined the Post staff after graduation. He has also worked at the Oregonian in Portland, Ore., and The Sporting News. His seventh book, March 1939: Before the Madness, was issued in February 2014.

Chambers covers college and professional hockey for The Denver Post. He has written for the Post since 1994, after dumping his first 9-to-5 office job a couple years out of college. He primarily follows the University of Denver hockey team and helps cover the Avalanche.